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Smash on NBC HDTV

21K views 396 replies 49 participants last post by  Cal1981 
#1 ·
So after all the hype what did everyone think? I enjoyed the show, found it interesting that they are weaving several plots within the show. I like seeing the writing interwoven wiht the search for a lead. I don't belive for a moment that this type of thing happens, but I'm going to enjoy the ride, will be tuning in to see where things go.
 
#52 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by bruce73 /forum/post/21680498


Oh, you're not.

While the ratings are a bit down, I'm feeling the opposite, the more I see, the more I like. I to am watching it over Castle and H50, both of which I enjoy for various reasons though they are very different. I watched Smash almost live, then H50 but Castle is still sitting on the DVR.
 
#53 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by dave1216 /forum/post/21680475


The show is starting to lose my interest. I'll bet I am not alone.

I thought the same thing as I watched the last ep yesterday.

I like the singing and dancing(which they always highlight in the teasers) but I'm getting board by all the talking and general backstage goings on.

Maybe I'm not the target market, I like shows like SYTYCD and DWTS but really never got into Glee because of all the talking. We'll see, I'm not bailing just yet but on my way. Glee only took two shows to decided it wasn't my kind of show, this one is holding more interest for now.

I really like McPhee and would be gone by now if not for her and her great vocals. The blonde is interesting too but IMO not nearly as talented as McPhee. The British guy is OK too but I really don't like the producer gal and her liquor throwing scenes, oh and not so hot for the sneaky secretary guy either.
 
#54 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by jjeff /forum/post/21683617


I thought the same thing as I watched the last ep yesterday.

I like the singing and dancing(which they always highlight in the teasers) but I'm getting board by all the talking and general backstage goings on.

Maybe I'm not the target market, I like shows like SYTYCD and DWTS but really never got into Glee because of all the talking. We'll see, I'm not bailing just yet but on my way. Glee only took two shows to decided it wasn't my kind of show, this one is holding more interest for now.

I really like McPhee and would be gone by now if not for her and her great vocals. The blonde is interesting too but IMO not nearly as talented as McPhee. The British guy is OK too but I really don't like the producer gal and her liquor throwing scenes, oh and not so hot for the sneaky secretary guy either.

My thoughts pretty much agree. I really like McPhee, but she is not great at lipsyncing. No emotion. Kinda like Rossum in the Phantom movie if you ever saw that. If you like Katherine, try the Hitman disc by David Foster. I think all the subplots are boring and the music numbers are not good enough to make it worth my time.
 
#55 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by jjeff /forum/post/0



I thought the same thing as I watched the last ep yesterday.

I like the singing and dancing(which they always highlight in the teasers) but I'm getting board by all the talking and general backstage goings on.

Maybe I'm not the target market, I like shows like SYTYCD and DWTS but really never got into Glee because of all the talking. We'll see, I'm not bailing just yet but on my way. Glee only took two shows to decided it wasn't my kind of show, this one is holding more interest for now.

Exactly. This is basically "Glee for Grownups." I enjoy the performances, but the narrative part is not particularly gripping. Maybe it is to those who know the biz ...
 
#56 ·
I hate shows like DWTS, SYTYCD and AI so I guess that's why I like this show. I'm enjoying the mix of narrative and music at this point. I'm not anywhere near the business and I don't feel it has an insider take on things, I just find it something different to watch that isn't a fake competition geared to teen girls.
 
#57 ·
Count my wife and me among the group of people that enjoyed the premiere but have been liking it less and less in the following weeks to the point where we've dumped it from the DVR. I personally dont find anything compelling or entertaining about showtunes, but that alone didn't make me lose interest. It was the really uninteresting storylines and the fact that McPhee isn't improving, she's regressing with each episode. What a major bore she turned out to be. Easy on the eyes, tough on the brain. I hope viewership picks up so that those of you that like it wont have it cancelled. NBC sure could use a hit.
 
#58 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by skyehill /forum/post/21707453


Count my wife and me among the group of people that enjoyed the premiere but have been liking it less and less in the following weeks to the point where we've dumped it from the DVR. I personally dont find anything compelling or entertaining about showtunes, but that alone didn't make me lose interest. It was the really uninteresting storylines and the fact that McPhee isn't improving, she's regressing with each episode. What a major bore she turned out to be. Easy on the eyes, tough on the brain. I hope viewership picks up so that those of you that like it wont have it cancelled. NBC sure could use a hit.

I thought it was good last night and every night.
 
#59 ·
There is an easy solution if the show takes off. I believe the plan is to stage the ACTUAL production of "Marilyn: The Musical" on Broadway. If that happens, Hilty can star in that show for sure.


That seems to be high risk strategy if it's accurate. The TV show could reveal so much of the concept and production numbers that potential ticket buyers might shy away because they didn't like what they saw or had a "been there, done that" feeling.



Actually taking the Marilyn show to Broadway was my suspicion from the beginning. People were familiar with The Lion King and that seemed to work; likewise, people know operas and continue to go to them.


If this continues to be like The Red Shoes and follows all the things that arise in creating a musical then it should continue to be interesting. Since Spielberg is connected with it, there's a good chance that might be the case. If it continues to be The War of the Girls, then we simply get more cliche.


My suggestion: hire both of them and use both of them. It's not unprecidented. A very controversial Parsifal film in the eighties did this with the title character, and Luis Bunuel did this in That Obscure Object of Desire. One could argue that Marilyn Monroe was such a complex and iconic character that one person is not enough to do her justice. The actresses could alternate who did what scenes, possibly in a very dynamic way- you might never know who was going to be doing whatever scenes or numbers from night to night.
 
#60 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Shaded Dogfood /forum/post/21708197




My suggestion: hire both of them and use both of them. It's not unprecidented. A very controversial Parsifal film in the eighties did this with the title character, and Luis Bunuel did this in That Obscure Object of Desire. One could argue that Marilyn Monroe was such a complex and iconic character that one person is not enough to do her justice. The actresses could alternate who did what scenes, possibly in a very dynamic way- you might never know who was going to be doing whatever scenes or numbers from night to night.



See the movie: Norma Jean & Marilyn (1996)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117201/
 
#61 ·
Finally saw this week's episode of Smash and loved it, again. Maybe it's because I'm a Broadway junkie but I have really been enjoying this show. Thought that the Jonas kid, another singer-actor with Broadway experience, was terrific.


I enjoyed the rehearsal hall duels between Megan Hilty, as the star of Marilyn for the moment, and Katharine McPhee, who although in the chorus tried, to her ultimate detriment, to upstage Marilyn. McPhee's character needed that intervention from her fellow members of the ensemble.
Anyway, I think the show has been terrific both musically and dramatically so far but considering the paucity of recent posts here, I suspect it won't survive.
 
#62 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by gwsat /forum/post/21730608


Finally saw this week's episode of Smash and loved it, again. Maybe it's because I'm a Broadway junkie but I have really been enjoying this show. Thought that the Jonas kid, another singer-actor with Broadway experience, was terrific.


I enjoyed the rehearsal hall duels between Megan Hilty, as the star of Marilyn for the moment, and Katharine McPhee, who although in the chorus tried, to her ultimate detriment, to upstage Marilyn. McPhee's character needed that intervention from her fellow members of the ensemble.
Anyway, I think the show has been terrific both musically and dramatically so far but considering the paucity of recent posts here, I suspect it won't survive.

As usual you and I agree Sir! Even if departs from reality frequently it's great to have any show on that centers on a Broadway production. It has had quite a polarizing impact on the forum/blog community, especially in the Hilty vs. McPhee\\Ivy vs. Karen arena. Take a look at the Smash forum on the Television Without Pity site and just stand back with a heat shield while you're reading
 
#63 ·
My wife and I are enjoying it. Some of the original songs are very good, and would sound perfectly at home in a real Broadway production. The cast is uniformly terrific, McPheever is better than I thought she'd be, the plotline is nothing terribly inventive, but who cares? Like I noted a few weeks ago -- it's 'Glee' for grown-ups, without the heavy-handed baggage.


I thought 'Pushing Daisies' was wildly inventive and one of the best things I'd seen on TV in a long time. People didn't "get it" and ratings crashed. They'd rather watch crime procedurals. Nothing I can do about that. I can support a show like this, though.
 
#64 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by archiguy /forum/post/21733811


I thought 'Pushing Daisies' was wildly inventive and one of the best things I'd seen on TV in a long time. People didn't "get it" and ratings crashed.

I got it the first year. After that the premise became repetitive/boring and I stopped watching before it was cancelled. Smash wise it hasn't lived up to its premiere although I haven't given up... just wish it would raise its intelligence a few points. A little too run of the mill.
 
#65 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by gwsat /forum/post/21730608


I enjoyed the rehearsal hall duels between Megan Hilty, as the star of Marilyn for the moment, and Katharine McPhee, who although in the chorus tried, to her ultimate detriment, to upstage Marilyn.

I don't think Karen was "trying" to upstage Ivy---she was just singing like she always did. She just didn't know how to be part of the ensemble...
 
#67 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by fafner /forum/post/21734779


Watch it again and you willl change your mind.

Maybe you should watch it again.


When the ensemble people came to her apartment and they were doing the demo/show for Dev, was Karen also trying to upstage them? No, but they still had to rein her in. That's just Karen's way---to do things full throttle with the dial turned all the way up.


Fine for a lead, not necessarily so for the ensemble.
 
#68 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Amnesia /forum/post/21734138


I don't think Karen was "trying" to upstage Ivy---she was just singing like she always did. She just didn't know how to be part of the ensemble...

You may be right. It's entirely possible that Karen's singing and dancing, until the intervention, was clueless, not contrived. She simply may not have understood what is required of members of an ensemble.
 
#69 ·
I just got caught up with the last 2 episodes and am eagerly looking forward to the new one tonight. For me, this show is terrific. McPhee is so well cast in this part and has some real acting chops - not Academy Award stuff, but better than I would have guessed for an A.I. product. The unfolding story, though a bit heavy inside Broadway, is interesting and well done - and it's supposed to be 'inside Broadway'. I see it far more than a Glee for grownups with its much more layered characters and real story. Some of Glee's various agendas are occasionally present here as well, but actually well layered into the story vs. just in-your-face preaching.


I've never seen McPhee do a rockin', dancin' country song like the one from last week - and it was terrific. The other Broadway vets are also welcome. I'm really enjoying this, especially as my interest in Glee fades.
 
#70 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by flint350 /forum/post/21736780


I just got caught up with the last 2 episodes and am eagerly looking forward to the new one tonight. For me, this show is terrific. McPhee is so well cast in this part and has some real acting chops - not Academy Award stuff, but better than I would have guessed for an A.I. product. The unfolding story, though a bit heavy inside Broadway, is interesting and well done - and it's supposed to be 'inside Broadway'. I see it far more than a Glee for grownups with its much more layered characters and real story. Some of Glee's various agendas are occasionally present here as well, but actually well layered into the story vs. just in-your-face preaching.


I've never seen McPhee do a rockin', dancin' country song like the one from last week - and it was terrific. The other Broadway vets are also welcome. I'm really enjoying this, especially as my interest in Glee fades.

I agree that Smash seems to be pretty realistic, particularly in the way it portrays the intense competition for Broadway musical theater jobs. Competing for those jobs has to be incredibly wearing. No wonder Ivy went into diva mode when, intentionally or not, Karen's ensemble performances were too assertive.


Like you, I have tired of Glee. In fact, I have not yet watched the most recent episode and am considering deleting my season pass. Where are Kristen Chenoweth and Idina Menzel when we need them.)
 
#71 ·
Considering they haven't even touched on injuries or drugs yet, there's a lot more drama they could add to this show.


One of the most interesting parts of Robert Altman's The Company was listening to the Joffrey Ballet dancers ask if anyone had the anti-nausea drug that they use to get through a dance where they are swinging and spinning on a ribbon of fabric.
 
#72 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by gwsat /forum/post/21736660


You may be right. It's entirely possible that Karen's singing and dancing, until the intervention, was clueless, not contrived. She simply may not have understood what is required of members of an ensemble.

Considering her voice and her looks, Karen may have gone through high school and college always being the lead in any production that she was in. She just may not know how to tone it down or as she put it she was taught to "play to the balcony seats". Kind of like athletes that are big stars in high school and college and find a completely different world when they get to the pro level.
 
#73 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by gwsat /forum/post/21737103


...Where are Kristen Chenoweth and Idina Menzel when we need them.)

In case you don't know, Kristen Chenoweth is in the new show GCB. Though I'm not normally a fan of such shows (based solely on the description, haven't seen it yet obviously), I love Chenoweth and try to see any show she is in. What a voice! Her version of Alone by Heart on Glee was incredible.
 
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